The data on carbon emissions in 2023 is only just in, but we can already predict where things will go this year.

Global greenhouse pollution hit a new record and increased 1.1 per cent last year, the International Energy Agency reported last week. That was almost entirely a China story. Had the country held its carbon budget steady — or reduced it, in the manner of fellow high-income countries whose pollution is now at a 50-year low — then the world’s climate footprint would have shrunk by about 155 million metric tonnes, instead of growing by 410 million tonnes.

China’s push for growth is bad news for the environment. Credit: AP

If you want to know how this year is........

© The Sydney Morning Herald